Family
by Constable Remington
Summary: Tracey / Prof. Oak Tracey wants Professor Oak to notice him... and thinks the man's been working a little too hard lately. Could be looked at as a purely friendship way, but wasn't intended that way.


Tracey didn't think Professor Oak really paid attention to him.

It was an upsetting thought, honestly. He'd gone so far on his travels with Ash though the Orange Islands, come along with him ever since he'd heard that the boy knew Professor Oak and could take him back to Kanto and Pallet Town. Tracey had spent a lot of time refining his sketches and watching skills during that time, hoping to improve so he could serve as a good assistant to Oak. It was, practically, all he'd been able to think about.

Telling Ash goodbye hadn't been too hard -- after all, he and Misty had Brock to go along with him (strange as the guy was), and now that he was in Pallet Town, he felt like everything in his life had been finalized.

And yet...

Well, it wasn't that Professor Oak was necessarilly ignoring him. Just... the man seemed busy pretty much constantly, and while Tracey hardly minded taking care of the Pokemon in the Corral and cleaning house, he couldn't help but feel... lonely.

Ash's mom would visit at times, and Tracey had started to go over to her house and have dinner at her request. Tracey figured she probably liked having someone else to make dinner for -- a "growing boy with a big appetite", she said. With time, she had become someone Tracey could open up to, and it didn't take him long to say something about Oak to her.

She only smiled.

"I have an idea," she said. "Why don't you cook dinner for him? Eating together is the best time a family has, isn't it? Ash and I used to have our best conversations at the dinner table, and isn't that true for you and me, too?"

Tracey had never heard a better idea in his life.

Cooking, however, was not something he was entirely skilled at. Ash's mom showed him the basics, gave him a recipe to work from, even offered to help him do the actual deed. In the end, though, Tracey knew he'd have to do it himself. It wouldn't be truly special, otherwise, and Tracey _needed_ something truly special so Oak would just _notice_ him.

And so the cooking began.

The first night was a complete disaster. Just as he'd gotten started, there'd been an emergency in the Corral, and he'd had to rush out to take care of it. When he'd gotten back, the crisp, sharp scent of burned food met him, and he sighed, hating having to dump it out.

The next night, though, things changed. Tracey went out into the Corral, asked Bayleef to watch the other Pokemon for him (she agreed with a happy squeal and a nuzzle against his face), and headed back inside, determined.

He was a man with a mission.

Cooking wasn't nearly as hard as it looked. It was just following directions, after all, and as long as he did everything to the letter like Ms. Ketchum had explained, there was no way there could be any problem.

Cooking, however, wasn't the hard part.

Tracey stood, quietly, outside of the lab, peeking inside the cracked door. He tried to think of what to say -- tried to figure out exactly what he was going to do. He could see Professor Oak inside, bustling about, working into the night. Tracey wondered what had been keeping him up for so many nights...

Slowly pushing the door further open, Tracey cleared his throat self-consciously. Oak stopped what he was doing, and turned towards the door, looking surprised.

"Oh, Tracey," Oak said, a small smile on his face. "How is everything going outside?"

"Everything's fine," Tracey said. Never mind that he hadn't really checked in the last fourty-five minutes. Damnit, he should have done that before coming out here. There was a pause, and then Tracey decided to just go for it. "...Aren't you hungry?"

"Oh, I'll be alright," Oak said, waving him off. "Don't worry about me."

Tracey stood there for a moment, in the doorway, half-considering just giving in and eating alone.

"W-well, I... made dinner for us, so... if... you get hungry later," he said, finally, his gaze shifting to the ground, "Then, uh, it'll... be there."

Oak glanced back up, looking even more surprised than before.

"Dinner?" he repeated. "Well, how about that. I didn't know you cooked, Tracey. You have to tell me these things."

Tracey couldn't help but flush. He wasn't good at receiving attention, no matter how much he'd wanted it. Especially from Professor Oak...

"S-sorry," he said, quickly. "Uhm, it's just... in the kitchen. I... I set the table for us, so..."

Oak nodded, quickly finishing what he'd been doing and stepping away from the computer. He moved towards Tracey, smiled, and set a hand on his shoulder.

"You're a very good assistant, Tracey. Sometimes, I think you take better care of me than I do of myself." He grinned, just a little, and brushed past the boy, heading down the hall.

Tracey only gaped after him, the place on his shoulder burning.

Dinner had been a good idea. Oak even said that Tracey was a good cook. At the end of the meal, they went out to the Corral, taking a walk in the setting sun, and Tracey showed the Professor the Pokemon egg that was about to hatch. A baby would take a lot of work, Oak said, he then he turned to Tracey.

"I'm glad to have you around here, Tracey," he said, sincerely. Tracey could only stare back at him in surprise. "You've got a sharp mind for Pokemon and you're a very responsible young man. I'm very proud of you."

Tracey thought he felt tears in his eyes.

"I just... like to help you, Professor," Tracey said, finally, eagerly, practically grinning. "That's all I want."

"Then that must make me a very lucky man," Oak replied, amusement dancing in his eyes. He put an arm around Tracey's shoulders, beginning to lead the young man back inside. "Come on in. You should take a look at some of my recent findings..."


End file.
